The Battle of Hogwarts
by LadyxAislin
Summary: AU. Calliope Elizabeth Reid is a muggle-born student who attended Hogwarts despite the war against her kind. She is merely a fifth year when Harry Potter and his gang return to Hogwarts to finish off the war. Will she be able to survive with her friends? Or will the war finish her off just like her family? First story; it's in first person. Please read and review. Thanks!


**A.N: **Well, this is my first story! I'm seriously nervous about putting it out especially since it's an AU with a OC as a main character. I doubt I'll be getting many reviews or favorites with this but I thought it was a cute idea. Kind of. Towards the end there is a hint of Fred Weasley x OC, but there isn't anything too big about it. I normally don't write in first person, either, so if I ever decide to write a sequel to this one-shot it might be in third person. Thanks again for clicking on my story and I hope you enjoy it!

Feel free to review. I'd appreciate it.

I do not own Harry Potter, but I do own Anna Lynn Cooper and Calliope Elizabeth Reid.

**Total amount of words without author note: 6,924**

* * *

_The Battle of Hogwarts_

Remember when Hogwarts used to be one of the best places to be? It was supposed to be the safest place someone can be? Young children and teenagers were supposed to have their fun goofing off, meeting new friends, making rivals, and actually learning something useful? That doesn't happen anymore. The Hogwarts the children once grew to love is lost in darkness and being ran by the old potions master, Severus Snape.

The old headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, died just last year. Almost everyone figured that the Transfiguration professor would take over but we were all wrong. Instead of the strict, Gryffindor head becoming the headmistress we have the unfair and bias Slytherin head. I used to never have a problem with him. I mean... he never bothered me that much mostly because I was invisible to him. Why would he notice little ol' me? I'm nothing special. And even if I was someone special he's too obsessed with taking points away from Gryffindor for whatever reason. Get the answer right? Great job Gryffindor! You now get ten points taken away for talking back.

I'm not kidding. He did that before. The student answered the question right but got points deducted! And the one that seems to be harassed by him the most is the famous boy who lived. Harry Potter.

That's right. Harry Potter has this ridiculous title. Yeah yeah, you're probably looking at me like I'm insane or hating me this moment. Sure, he defeated Voldemort when he was younger but he was _just _a baby. He didn't understand what was going on at the time! While he may be a major player in the war he isn't the only one fighting against Voldemort. What about his friends? Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley. They weren't there that night but they are outside of the castle - probably being chased after Voldemort - trying to find a way to stop the war.

Without Hermione by his side I doubt Harry Potter would still even be alive. She is the brains in the group and she is the one who keeps them safe. Ronald Weasley - or Ron I suppose, I heard he goes by that - might not be the best fighter out there... but he sure is loyal. From what I can tell at least. Harry is... well he's the stupid brave one. I just received the 'are you crazy?!' look again didn't I?

I don't want you to get the wrong picture, though. I believe Harry _will _be the one to defeat Voldemort. There is no questioning that. That's right. I said he will defeat the Dark Lord. I'm not too sure when it will happen or how they (meaning Harry, Ron, and Hermione) will find away to weaken Voldemort, but they will. They just have too. And we will be the winner of this war.

Earlier I stated how we can't just wait on Harry to defeat Voldemort and I still stand by that. Voldemort may be the leader of the dark side, but he has cruel and evil Death-Eaters on his side. They may be following his orders but they are the ones out their killing muggle-borns, half-bloods, and clueless muggles. Heartless, isn't it? To go after someone who can't even protect themselves or know that this world exists? Unless they have a muggle-born of course.

The Death-Eaters go after the weaker ones and laugh at the death of "dirty" blood. They have thousands of deaths on their hands and they could care less. And when one of them die they step on the body carelessly. They don't even really care about each other. I'm not even sure if they care about their family!

Family. That is something I miss the most. The loving look in my mother's eyes when I came home from my first year, the warmth my father's hug used to bring me, and the joy sparking in my younger brother's eyes when I came home for Christmas. I will _never _see any of that, though. My once loving family is now broken and ripped away from me. Those damn Death-Eaters killed my _muggle _family.

That's right. Muggle. I'm just one of those filthy 'mud-bloods' who doesn't deserve to be alive. I'm apparently stupid and shouldn't get the proper training - according to the other purebloods. Who follow after Voldemort that is. I have met a fair share of nice purebloods. I'm not bias thinking all purebloods are cruel to us muggle-borns.

My best friend, Anna Cooper, is actually a pureblood. And her family is probably the nicest people I met. They make me feel welcome and offered me a home when the news about my family's death reached them. Refusing their offer was hard. And the broken expression my friend gave me was hurtful even for me. I couldn't put them in danger though. They were already on Voldemort's bad side since they refused to join him, but taking me in would have pushed them more into danger. Anna tried to convince me to stay with her, but I couldn't do it. Instead I hugged her tightly, gave her a sad smile, and walked away.

Which is why, when I returned to Hogwarts for my fifth year, Anna went into shock. I wasn't able to write to her and I went into hiding over the summer. Anna tackled me into a hug and sobbed, gripping onto me tightly. After she calmed down she ended up calling me stupid for returning. And I agree with her. I'm a muggle-born attending Hogwarts. A Hogwarts with Death-Eaters as teachers.

Insane? Yes. Brilliant? I believe so. These Death-Eaters seem rather... unintelligent. They can't even piece together that I'm a muggle-born! Am I stupid for not changing my name? Yes, most definitely. I wasn't about to lose the only thing I have in common with my family though. They died because of me and I wasn't about to abandon their love. I am who I am and I won't be changing that anytime soon.

Anna told me that's my Hufflepuff side coming out - since I'm too loyal to abandon my family surname. I have to agree.

Although, Anna also says it's probably the hidden Gryffindor in me that makes me be disobedient towards the Death-Eaters. I'm not exactly silent when it comes to something I disagree with.

Most people question why I was put into Hufflepuff in the first place. Apparently Hufflepuff isn't one of the favorites within the school. I guess I understand why; we don't (usually) cause trouble and we are almost always in the background. Except when a fellow Hufflepuff student known as Cedric Diggory was chosen for the Triwizard Tournament. I was only a second year student at the time, but the death of a fellow Hufflepuff student was tough. Most of my housemates believed Harry when he announced that Voldemort was back. The Minister of Magic, however, was a complete wimp. He denied the truth and kept it hidden from the world. If he wasn't so stupid we probably wouldn't even be in this problem right now.

The death of a fellow student changed something within me second year. I wasn't as quiet as I used to be. I knew there was a war coming and I knew I had to stop playing around and become serious with my studies. I never told Anna what changed my heart since she was already torn up about the death. If I told her I believe the war was going to become something that affected us directly she would have freaked out and gave away the fact that I was studying advance work.

When I was a first year I used to smile and joke around in the Common Room with my friends. I'm the only muggle-born in our group so they taught me a lot and in exchange I told them about the muggle life. They were always interested in the newest invention the muggles made and seemed to be truly interested in how things worked. It was amusing to watch us change roles, depending on what the conversation was.

However, the happy times are now gone, and death is surrounding most of us. Death-Eaters attacked my family and Anna's family is disappearing one by one. We lost some housemates over the summer and most half-bloods and muggle-borns went into hiding. It's not just Hufflepuff, either. Ravenclaw and Gryffindor had many students not returning. I'm not about to chicken out though. I lost my parents because of this damn war and I wasn't about to sit back and watch as more students become parentless. I'm ready to fight for what I believe in. And I'm not going to be scared off because of death!

* * *

A few months have passed by and tension is rising within the school. The Carrows, the Death-Eaters who became our teachers, are growing more aggressive and sadistic as the days go by. They grow angry much more quickly - personally, I believe it's because of those students saving others and disappearing whenever the Carrows come after to punish them - and are much more cruel when punishing the troublemakers. I'm one of the main targets in their anger. And unfortunately for them I'm not going to stop misbehaving. If I can protect my housemates from getting the same treatment than so be it.

Anna is absolutely terrified whenever I stumble back into the common room. I can't blame her though; sometimes I return with broken bones and other times I return with gashes down my side. I'm fine though. The pain that I used to feel has become numb; for the most part. I'm... well I'm getting used to the harsh treatment. After all one can only take a beating so many times before turning almost emotionless.

Don't get me wrong, now. I'm not emotionless to my friends - at least when we are alone in the common room. I shut them out in the halls though. If someone was to pick up on my love towards them they would be in danger. I honestly doubt they'll be able to handle the pain.

If Anna was able to read my mind she would be disgusted with the way I thought. I'm sacrificing my own health and life for her to make it past her fifth year. I'm unsure rather or not I'll be returning next year. I am truly thinking about joining the war after I leave this year. Someone has to put a stop to all of this chaos and Harry Potter just isn't doing it fast enough. I still believe in him, but I need to start helping everyone take out those Death-Eaters.

* * *

Finally! Professor McGonagall forced Snape to flee the school! And on top of that the Carrow siblings are knocked out from Snape deflecting Professor McGonagall's spells. Secretly, I found it a bit odd that he would knock them out but then I realized why he truly didn't care. He's a Death-Eater. A filthy Death-Eater who I'm going to go after. He killed our Headmaster! While Dumbledore has always been odd he was a great Headmaster. He cared about his students and he cared about his co-workers.

I shouldn't be focusing so much on the ex-headmaster though. Harry Potter and his group have returned to Hogwarts. I overheard the Weasley girl, I believe her name is Ginevra, talk about some type of RavenClaw item that will help destroy Voldemort. Harry told McGonagall that the only way she can help him is to give them time. Time to search for something he has no hint about. Voldemort already announced his attack on Hogwarts; if we don't hand over Harry Potter he will come to the school and fight. Of course the Slytherin students tried to hand him over but I knew, with Professor McGonagall running the school now, that won't be an option.

I didn't blame the Slytherin students, really. It was the way they grew up and their parents are most likely on Voldemort's side. They obviously don't want their parents coming here to fight. They understood that if a war was really about to start, then people are going to die. Death isn't a topic most children can handle emotionless, even if their parents are Death-Eaters. I understood why they are scared and wanted to turn Harry over but that wasn't an option as I stated before. It just wouldn't happen.

Anna, my best friend, runs down the hall with me, holding onto my hand tightly. I'm not surprised. She never has been good with stress and with Voldemort threatening to come here within an hour... well she can't take the stress very well. Knowing just how she is I took it upon myself to meet up with some of the prefects to hand her over. While Anna couldn't stand pressure from being in the front line she's a good enough witch to help protect the first and second years. There is no way we would force those kids to fight. I know some third years that are being hidden as well since they aren't the best in their class.

"No! Calliope please don't go out there!" Anna cries, grabbing onto my hand tightly, tears streaming down her cheeks. I smile softly up at her and pull her into a hug, stroking her hair to calm her down. Anna has grown close to me; so close that we joke about being siblings. Or used too.

"I already told you my decision, Anna," I reply softly, lifting her chin up with my finger and staring into her eyes, "I will fight for what I believe in. If that brings death to me then so be it." Blunt and a bit harsh but she knows just how much this means to me. I'm finally able to do something useful. I used to get punished all the time for disobedience but that isn't the same. I want to be out in the battle protecting people, fighting for what I truly believe in. From the way Anna's sobs grew louder I knew she understood. I have already sacrificed a lot of my childhood protecting her and studying advanced spells. She finally understands my sudden interest in becoming serious with my studies.

"D-Do you really have to be in the front line though?" Anna questions softly, sniffling. At the sad smile I gave her she knew the answer. I wouldn't hide in the background. I may not be the famous boy who lived but I'm going to fight as hard as I can. "But what about the older students! Calliope you are only fifteen! The older students know more spells than you. I understand that you studied more, but this is different! If you get the spell wrong or fail to block..." Anna sobs increase in volume making the prefects feel slightly uncomfortable, "Calliope... you would die!"

"Anna Lynn Cooper," I begin, brushing her brown hair out of her eyes, "you understand why I'm doing this don't you? I won't leave another child parentless because of the Death-Eaters. I might not a sixth or seventh year but I know my spells. I didn't stop studying this year because of those childish rules. I fought with the Carrow siblings, I took beatings for you and our housemates... I am not backing down. We are going to have a battle at Hogwarts and I will be in it. I will be standing beside our professors knocking Death-Eaters out. I will be protecting our fellow schoolmates so they don't end up like Cedric Diggory. He did not die in vain." One of the prefects look away from us, clutching his hand into a fist at the mention of a lost schoolmate. "People _will _die today, Anna, but you must remember that we all care about each other.

"That is why I want you to be with the prefects protecting the younger students. They aren't ready for a battle with grown ups. You aren't strong enough to handle all of the pressure. We both always knew this and you even mentioned it yourself. That's why you want to become a store owner remember? You are strong enough to protect the children though. You can fight off the people who want to harm you all. You can become a hero by protecting the younger children.

"I am not insulting you by saying you are weak. You are strong and hard-working. You are loyal to your friends and house. That is important for you to understand. Your job is to protect the youngsters because they can't protect themselves. You, on the other hand, can. Anna Lynn Cooper, you are my sister... my best friend... and you will always be part of my family.

"If...If one of us dies today we need to understand that we didn't die in vain. We were out there doing something right for the world. If this war continues... if this war continues more deaths will come. I love you Anna; you have been my family when mine was killed. And even before that you were like a sister to me. Since the time we met on the train." I finish bringing both of us to tears. The likelihood of both of us surviving is slim. We both know that by the way we are clinging onto each other.

"C-Calliope Elizabeth Reid," Anna whispers pulling back from our hug, wiping away her tears, "You are my sister and I care deeply about you. I understand why you have to go out in the front line but please be safe. If...If something does happen to you remember that you will always be in my heart. And if I d-die today I want you to promise me that you won't blame yourself. Calliope Elizabeth Reid... I love you like a real sister. We will see each other again later." The silence between us is loud and clear. We know the chances of both of us making it out alive is slim. But we know, even if one of us dies today, we will be watching each other in the next realm. We will still be in the other's heart.

* * *

Saying goodbye to Anna was hard to do but I had to go join the front lines. We hugged each other one last time before smiling at each other. I watched as Anna followed the prefects, heading to the location the younger students are hiding. Watching her walk away was hard because I still had so much to say to her but not enough time. I highly doubt Voldemort will keep his word about attacking in an hour, especially since we did not hand over the Potter boy. As soon as she was out of my sight I started to run down the hall, trying to reach the side of the castle I belong on. Most of the more experienced fighters are in the middle of the castle, Neville Longbottom is apparently blowing up a bridge with the help of his housemates, and on the other side of the castle is my old professor, Remus Lupin. I am joining the Remus Lupin side mostly because Neville should be blocking the other side of the castle by the bridge being blown up. And I'd only get in the way in the front of the castle.

I am halfway to the side of the castle I am suppose to be protecting when explosions went off over my head. I curse softly to myself and pick up my speed knowing the attacks have started early. No one has been seen yet and the kids that are still in the are shouting to each other trying to move quicker. I push past most of them and pick up my speed.

As soon as I arrive on my side of the castle I notice someone sneaking up behind Remus Lupin. And by the looks of it he hasn't noticed or is too held up in his current battle. Not wanting to see anyone die so soon I quickly shoot off a spell, knocking the Death-Eater out. Lupin looks back at me after knocking out his own Death-Eater before smiling and nodding his thanks. I nod back before focusing on all of the Death-Eaters coming. This battle is about to get ugly.

* * *

My side of the castle is doing fairly well; we haven't lost many members and the Death-Eaters that attacked are mostly knocked out. I have to say that I'm surprised how sadistic these bastards are though. We are in the middle of a battle and they shoot off crucio?! Really? I would understand the killing curse but still, the torture curse? It honestly doesn't make any sense.

Remus Lupin, my old Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, asked me to check the other side of the castle. I was surprised at first since he always had an eye on me during the fight after my first appearance with me saving him, but he must have determined that I'm fine on my own. I'm not insulted by him watching over me since I knew I was young compared to most people on this side. However I told Lupin that I'll check on the middle as well since it's on my way. He looked worried at first before nodding his head in agreement.

It was touching, knowing how much he seemed worried about me. After my parents died I haven't had a adult-like figure in my life besides the other professors. In my eyes, though, they were required to pay attention to me. Lupin isn't. He could have just sent me off without worrying about my life. Waving goodbye to my allies I run off, dodging spells from left to right. The Death-Eaters have broken in somewhere - hopefully the other side or middle doesn't have many deaths.

* * *

The middle of the castle is in complete chaos. People are shooting off spells from left to right, the castle is falling apart, and people are dying all around me. Unable to run past the mess I jump into the battle, shooting stunning and knock out spells at the enemies.

Twenty minutes within the fight I notice a red head laughing at something his brother said. At a closer look at him I notice it's one of the Weasley twins. Looking up at the castle I finally notice the collapsing wall. Without even realizing it I begin to run towards him as fast as I can, tackling him out of the way and rolling us over a few times narrowly missing the pieces of the wall falling down at us. The red head stares down at me with his eyes widen in surprise, his mouth dropping open. I shift nervously underneath him with a small blush forming on my cheeks. Bad! Why in Merlin's name am I blushing? Stop it!

"You just saved me," he finally says, a small smile forming on his face. I swallow nervously and nod my head, agreeing with him. "Thank you," he climbs off of me and reaches his hand down, helping me up. I send him a small smile before waving and running off, deciding to check the other side. The middle of the castle is still in chaos but it isn't as bad as it used to be.

* * *

My vision begins to blur as I slide down against the wall, cursing softly to myself at my own stupidity. Voldemort called his people back but I was unable to dodge this nasty curse. I'm lucky that it wasn't the killing curse! I slowly move my hand down to my side and leans my head back against the wall, breathing softly. I made it to the other side of the castle and noticed how much trouble they were having. Being the idiotic self I am I jumped into the fight and helped them scare the Death-Eaters back.

It wasn't easy, either. We lost many allies ourselves and some of us are probably never going to be the same. Ever. The bleeding gash on my side is quite worrying, but I'm no where near anyone else. Shifting closer to the wall I begin to close my eyes, unable to stand the pain any longer. One can only take getting injured so many times, after all.

* * *

"Do you think she's okay?" a male asks worryingly, lightly brushing away some of my hair.

"I believe she'll be fine, Mr. Weasley," Madame Promfrey confirms, lightly touching the side with my gash. I wince lightly at the touch and groan, trying to open my eyes. "Be quiet now! She's waking up. Don't put too much stress on her." I hear someone begin to walk away. After attempting to open my eyes a few more times I finally notice a blurry figure in front of me.

"W-What happened?" I question softly, attempting to focus on the blur. It's hard to say what I saw but it looks like the blur has red hair; I'm pretty sure there is another person beside it as well.

"We found you unconscious," one of them answers. I blink a few times and, to my relief, finally begin to see the actual appearance of the person. It's one of the Weasley twins. And the person beside him has to be the other.

"How are you feeling?" the other one asks carefully, sending me a thankful smile, "Fred, how about you go over to mum and tell her she woke up? I'm pretty sure she'd like to know." Fred looks over at his brother before nodding in agreement and running off towards a group of red heads off in the distance.

"Okay I guess. My head hurts though but my side feels a lot better," I mummer to him, "I'm sorry but who are you exactly? A Weasley I'm sure but I was never able to keep up with all the names." He throws his head back and chuckles, shaking his head in amusement.

"Well I'm George, George Weasley," he introduces himself grinning, "And you are?"

"Calliope Reid."

"That's a lovely name," George muses to himself lightly before his face expression sets into something more serious. He leans down closer to me and whispers into my ear, "Calliope I know you don't know us very well but I wanted to say thank you. Percy told me how he was too far from Fred when the wall started to collapse. You're the one who came out of no where and knocked him out of the way." He pulls back and holds back a smirk watching my face heat up in amusement. He leans back down one more time before continuing, "Percy told the whole family so they are all going to come over here and thank you. We are glad to hear that you're safe and unharmed though - for the most part."

His whole family? His whole family is coming over here to thank me? That's absolutely ridiculous! They have nothing to thank me for. I'm pretty sure they would have done the same if I was in the same situation. As multiple footsteps continue to head over towards me I sigh in defeat. They are already coming and I'm too injured to escape in time. Damn.

* * *

"I'm glad to hear that you are going to heal up nicely, dear! How are you feeling? Do you need me to get some medicine for you?" A round short ginger woman says as soon as she arrives.

"U-Um, I'm fine," I answer, sending her a small smile, "No medicine is required, ma'am." She sends me a searching look and after determining that I'm not lying she smiles, pulling me into a hug. My face flushes bright red in embarrassment as I nervously pat her back, unsure of what to do. The mother, from what I can see, is very welcoming and friendly.

"Sweetie are you sure you don't want me to heal anything?" she questions again, pulling away from the hug slightly to scan over my wounds again. I smile lightly and nod my head. The pain isn't anything I couldn't deal with. "I just wanted to thank you for saving my little boy. Without you... without you I would have had to burry one of my children before me." The mother's voice grows softer at the thought making me awkwardly pull her into a hug.

"But it didn't happen, ma'am. From the looks of it your family is perfectly fine."

"Molly, dear, give her a break," a male speaks up, walking over to us and sending me a bright smile, "Thank you for saving my boy. I hope your injuries are able to heal quickly." He gently pulls Molly off of me and wraps his arm around her waist causing her to smile. It was cute, watching the parents get the relief in knowing their children all made it out alive.

Before I was able to drift further into my thoughts the children all started to say their thanks. Most of them pulling me into a hug while others just petted my head. The only daughter, Ginny, gave me the brightest smile before tackling me into a hug whispering how thankful she is to see her brother alive. The tackle hurt me but I didn't let my wince become obvious. Instead I sent her a smile and hugged her back with one arm telling her it was my pleasure. When Ginny pulled away from me I glanced up and stare at the whole Weasley family. The only member who hasn't thanked me yet is Ronald which I'm thankful for. I understand why they are glad about me saving their son but I wasn't able to save everyone. I watched many schoolmates die at the hands of Death-Eaters because I was too slow to shoot off the curse or because I wasn't close enough. Unknowingly I lower my gaze down on my lap, squeezing my hand into a fist with my nails digging into my skin.

"Mom? Why is everyone standing over there?" Ronald Weasley calls out worryingly, rushing over to the group expecting to see one of his family members dead. He stops in front of me and raises his eyebrow curiously before looking over at his mother, silently asking her why they are surrounding me. His mother scolds him lightly for his rudeness before motioning over to me, causing my cheeks to flush pink again.

"This young lady, Ronald, saved Fred. Without her we wouldn't have Fred alive," Molly answers bluntly, watching Ronald's eyes widen in surprise. He immediately turns to face me and smiles awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

"S-Sorry for being rude. Thank you for saving him," Ronald stutters out before looking away, noticing Hermione Granger and Harry Potter walking over to us worryingly. "My family is alright!" he shouts out to them, smiling a much more easy smile.

"Great to hear, Ron!" Harry answers as he quickens his pace to check out the rest of the family. Hermione is following behind him closely, relief washing over her expression as soon as she notices the family doesn't have many injuries.

My eyes suddenly widen in surprise before I sit up, wincing at the sudden movement. I bite down on my bottom lip roughly before silently moving to one side to climb off the bed. The Weasley family is currently busy with Harry and Hermione that they won't notice my disappearance. I look back once more before rushing away from the family, heading towards one of the prefects I saw earlier.

I need to know why I haven't seen Anna.

* * *

"Anna... Anna died protecting the group, Calliope," Derek, the Hufflepuff sixth year prefect, explains watching me carefully. I stare blankly at him with his words running through my mind. Anna died protecting the group. Anna protected the group of youngsters. But she died. Anna died protecting the group. Anna Lynn Cooper isn't in this realm no more. "Calliope!" Derek shouts out worryingly as he notices me stepping away from him with watery eyes. Anna is gone. She won't be coming back.

And with that thought I sped through the halls trying to ignore the tears running down my face. Why didn't I stay with Anna? Why wasn't I there to rescue her? I should have known something was going to happen to her! I'm not too sure how long I ran but the next thing I remember clearly is collapsing against the wall and sobbing into my knees, curling up into a ball.

My best friend has left without me. She's gone.

* * *

Sniffling softly to myself I wipe away my tears, pushing myself off the wall. I can hear the sounds of the next battle and I can't ignore the screams. I lost my best friend already but I can't allow others to die while I become depressed. I can do that after the war; I just have to lock up all my emotions again like I did with the Carrow siblings.

With that thought running through my mind I run towards the noise, jumping straight into the battle. The fighting is tense and I knew this will be the last battle. Harry Potter and Voldemort will finally finish it off.

We will be free.

* * *

Harry Potter was finally able to defeat Voldemort. The Dark Lord has died and the light side has won. The Death-Eaters that haven't been knocked out escape fearfully as they try to become unknown again. The Death-Eaters that have been knocked out - or killed - are being sent to trial. The students all around are hugging each other in relief or sobbing into each other's arms depending on the news they heard.

I'm leaning against one of the broken walls with my hand covering over my bleeding gash. During the last battle it started to bleed again but I'm unable to feel any pain. I'm blaming my state of shock.

Voldemort is dead.

And the war is over.

Anna didn't die in vain. The youngsters that she was protecting came out with very little wounds. She was able to protect them even though it made her give her life up. Maybe I shouldn't have told her that I'd give my life up to save another student. But then again maybe it was a good thing. If Anna didn't... do what she did I couldn't imagine how many deaths the prefects would have had.

A small, sad smile forms on my lips as I watch the nurse move from person to person, trying to heal the more life threatening wounds. I'm too scared to hear the death count or be seen so I'm hiding in the background. Sighing softly to myself I close my eyes and lean my head back against the wall, letting my body begin to relax finally. The Death-Eaters won't be stupid enough to attack Hogwarts again.

"Fred! Look who I found," George says.

"Oh? Good job George!" Fred praises as he quickly walks over to me, "Let's take her over to mum. She'll be able to heal her up." Fred bends down and picks me up, grinning when I squirm in his hold. "Careful Calliope, you're bleeding pretty bad. I think we really need to get your injuries checked out." I couldn't help but to grumble softly under my breath as he carries me over to the group of red heads again.

Am I cursed to be by them for the rest of my life?!

* * *

"So you're a fifth year?" Ginny questions curiously, her eyes widening in surprise. Molly just finished healing me and the children decided it was time for them to question me.

"Yes."

"And you're a muggle-born?" one of the twins asks. I'm still unable to tell them apart.

"Yes."

"And you actually returned back to Hogwarts instead of going into hiding?" the other twin questions with his eyes widen in surprise.

"Yes I did. What better place to hide from Voldemort than the school? Well besides hiding in his ranks - which I would never have done."

"Should we find a way to get a hold of your parents? I bet they are terrified with you attending Hogwarts again," Molly adds. The corner of my lips tilt downwards as I shake my head, avoiding her gaze.

"My parents weren't able to make it out of the war. Some Death-Eaters killed them during my fourth year." I answer, swallowing nervously. With the war over where am I suppose to stay now? I used to stay with Anna during the summer but with her gone... With her gone I wouldn't be able to talk to Mrs. and Mr. Cooper without feeling guilty. Even though it wasn't my fault.

"You lost your parents?" Molly gasps softly, suddenly pulling me into another hug, "Sweetie I am so sorry. I wish I didn't bring that up!"

"Do you have anywhere else to stay?" Arthur asks watching Molly pull away from the hug. I stare at the family nervously, tempted to lie to them. unfortunately I couldn't bring myself to do it.

"No. I used to stay with the Cooper family but... the daughter d-didn't make it out alive," I stutter out avoiding their gaze again. Did the family already find out about her death? Or am I going to have to be the one to tell them? Why did Anna have to die and not me? She has so much more waiting for her!

"Oh. How about you go to sleep now, Calliope? Your injuries will heal shortly," Molly urges sending her husband a look. They will be talking about what to do later. I lay back down and nod my head in agreement. Sleep sounds fantastic at this moment.

* * *

It turns out that Molly and Arthur were determined to find me somewhere to live. Apparently they don't want me living on my own especially since I'll be returning to school for my sixth year. Molly and Arthur actually had me stay over for the first few weeks after the end of the war because they figured it was much more safer than living on my own. Especially with the Death-Eaters still out there. It was a nice and kind gesture but I couldn't help but to feel as if I'm interrupting their daily life. Ginny and Ronald keep informing me that my thoughts are irrational though.

However I still couldn't help but to feel guilty whenever they are at the dinner table eating. It would be a little bit different if I was friends with one of their children but I was unknown to the whole family besides a rumor about a "bad-ass" Hufflepuff according to Ginny. I couldn't help but to laugh at that. I'm not special after all.

* * *

"What do you mean Remus Lupin is going to take me in? Didn't he and Tonks just recently have a baby together?"

"Remus says he couldn't see you leaving on your own either and said he'd take you in. He would feel much better knowing you are with him. And he's lonely with the death of his wife," Molly explains smiling encouragingly at me. She already told me multiple times that she would have taken me in if I wanted. I always rejected her though. She already has so many children to take care of and her daughter, Ginny, will be leaving for her seventh year of Hogwarts this year. "And the baby's name is Teddy. He's quite a cutie."

"I don't want to be a burden though, Molly," I argue. Molly merely gives me the 'I'm older and know what's best look' before turning away and smiling.

"He's picking you up today, hon!"

Well. I guess I have no choice.

At least I won't be a burden to her family anymore. They have to be sick of seeing me already.

Or so I thought. Until the next morning I found a letter addressed to me by Fred Weasley.

Apparently he wants me to visit their joke shop.

* * *

**A.N: **The end! For now at least. I'm curious would you guys be interested in a sequel with Fred and Calliope actually getting to know each other? Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Please review and tell me what type of improvements I could make.

Have a nice day,

LadyxAislin


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